Japan, South Korea agree to maintain positive momentum in bilateral relations

On September 6, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol agreed to maintain the positive momentum in bilateral relations that have improved in recent times.

The two leaders reached this consensus at a bilateral summit in Seoul during Mr. Kishida's two-day visit to South Korea on September 6 and 7.

According to Yonhap news agency, at the bilateral meeting, President Yoon and Prime Minister Kishida affirmed to strengthen coordination between the two countries to effectively respond to increasing security challenges and threats in the region.

President Yoon stressed the importance of maintaining the positive momentum of bilateral cooperation that both he and Prime Minister Kishida have worked hard to promote over the past period, as well as the trilateral cooperation among the United States, Japan and South Korea.

For his part, Prime Minister Kishida stressed the importance of maintaining close coordination, while calling for efforts to further promote bilateral relations.

At the conference, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation in responding to emergencies in third countries was signed to facilitate joint efforts in evacuating citizens from conflict areas and sharing information between the two countries.

At a press conference, South Korean Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae Hyo said the MOU serves as an institutional framework to ensure the safety of citizens of the two countries, amid the world witnessing geopolitical instability.

In addition, the two leaders discussed measures to further facilitate travel between the two countries, such as simplifying entry procedures.

According to Kyodo news agency, this conference takes place ahead of the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Japan and South Korea in 2025. Therefore, the issue of strengthening bilateral cooperation dominates the discussion content.

The Japan-South Korea summit comes as Mr. Kishida prepares to end his tenure as prime minister, with a legacy of improving long-strained relations with Seoul.

This will be the 12th summit between the two leaders in just the past two years and could also be the last summit before Mr. Kishida steps down as Prime Minister after three years in office and does not seek re-election.

In a press conference last week, President Yoon Suk Yeol said he aims to maintain cooperation with Japan regardless of who becomes the new prime minister after the upcoming election of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) president in Japan.